Living the Tradition notes from a Family Owned and Operated Theme and Water Park

Tuesday, April 29, 2008 Living the Tradition: notes from a Family Owned and Operated Theme and Water Park By way of introduction, I’m Will Koch, the president of Holiday World & Splashin' Safari, a small theme park and water park combination in Santa Claus, Indiana, USA...

We’re a small theme park and water park that’s grown from about 300,000 in annual attendance in 1990 to over 1 million in annual attendance in 2006 and 2007. We’re family owned and operated. We only operate one park. As the years go by, there seem to be fewer and fewer parks that can make those statements. We’re part of a great old tradition that seems to be fading. Like many others who are in the theme park/amusement park business, I grew up in the business. I’ve been working in our park since I was 11 years old (FYI, that’s been a few years). I had the good fortune to learn about our industry with a great man (also my father) named Bill Koch. I learned the business from him not only at our park, but also sitting around the dining room table. I learned a lot about the amusement business from him. I learned a lot about business from him. I learned a lot about how to treat others, and how important it is to respect employees, vendors, peers, and customers. I’ve also had the opportunity to learn a great deal from my Mom, Pat Koch. Mom is still very much a part of Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari. Mom is a great motivator. She is the heart and soul of our parks. She upholds our values and cornerstones in wonderful ways with both our Guests and our Hosts and Hostesses. In the posts to come, I plan to share some of the things I’ve learned from my parents, from our Guests, from our staff at Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari, and others through the industry. I’ve been richly blessed in my life with so many great teachers. I look forward to doing the best I can to pass on some of what I’ve learned in a way that may be useful to others.
Posted By Will Koch -- At 4:14 PM \| Comments (3) \| Trackbacks (0)
Categories Amusements Parks, Attractions Business, Waterparks Tags Bill Koch, family business, Holiday World, Indiana, operators, Pat Koch
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Comments :

I love that photo of Will and his dad in front of The Raven. The Koch family dreamed for years about adding a roller coaster to the park and that dream was finally realized in 1995, which is the date of this photo.

Comment By Paula Werne, Holiday World At 4/30/2008 1:43 PM

You've got some beautiful wooden coaster right? Won lots of awards I think.. And hey, glad you're an anglophile. I'm an American-o-phile or whatever the correct word is myself, smitten after a teenage visit to Six Flags in 'New Joisey' and to The Yankee Stadium. I like the way you guys says things like 'elevator' when what you actually mean is 'lift' and how in business you always seem so relentlessly upbeat. Us Brits are relentlessly downbeat. It's the weather.

Comment By Charles Read At 4/30/2008 7:31 PM

I'm looking forward to hearing more about what you learned from your parents, guests, and staff. Thanks for sharing.

Comment By Tracy Kahaner At 5/2/2008 6:41 PM